Development of assessment standards

NZQA administers assessment standards to ensure that only credible, robust, consistent standards are listed on the Directory of Assessment Standards (DAS).

Assessment standards are:

• drafted by expert groups and circulated to stakeholders for comment and contribution
• submitted to NZQA for quality assurance and listing
• subject to review by stakeholders and experts on a regular basis. This allows for assessment and standards to be refined and updated over time.

Standard-setting bodies

Standard-setting bodies (SSBs) are responsible for the quality and credibility of the assessment standards that are submitted to NZQA for registration. The SSBs work with industry partners, professional groups, and other stakeholders to develop useful standards that are nationally recognised.

Service Delivery

Service Delivery is the business unit within NZQA that is responsible for:

• the quality assurance and registration of unit standards
• the quality assurance and listing of qualifications.

Quality Assurance criteria focus on:

• standards being fit for purpose, assessable and capable of consistent interpretation
• qualifications being attainable, clear in purpose and well designed
• general editorial and formatting matters.

Service Delivery is also responsible for:

• coordination of the Consent and Moderation Requirements (CMR) Panel, whose members quality assure and recommend for approval CMRs
• management of additions and changes to the classification system.

Australian units of competency

In October 2002, the Qualifications Authority Board approved a policy for the registration of Australian units of competency on the DAS. An SSB submits a DAS cover sheet and associated documentation to Service Delivery for evaluation and registration.